Beware the Monkeys!

We've been hanging out in Mumbai for about 3 days now taking in the sights, adjusting to jet lag and gearing up for our rural excursions. It's been great to have the down time, but I'm getting anxious to get started!

Today we spent the day at Elefanta Island - which is a very slow hour-long boat ride from the "Gateway to India" the large gate-like structure in the picture below.

To the left is the Taj Hotel.



Boats:



At Elefanta Island there are caves that were carved into the mountain.



It was cool to see the carvings, but it was even better to step away from the craziness that is Mumbai. There was lush vegetation and it was quiet and calm! It was nice to be in an open space without tons of people. There were also crazed monkeys that would take things literally out of your hands. I did not witness but heard a pack of monkeys wreaked havoc on one family's picnic. One lead monkey hissed and distracted the people while the other two monkeys tore apart and gobbled the food, and even wrestled a candybar from a child's hand. Traumatic!

We ate lunch at a restaurant that had a nice view of the bay and what parts of the city we could see through the thick haze. This area is so polluted and hazy because of the monsoon clouds. Here's a picture of our Veg Thali. Thail means 'set meal':



Well, time to wrap it up! Tomorrow we are transferring to Pune which will hopefully be the beginning of our microfinance adventures. Woo!

In India...

... it is hot and humid
... the food is delicious
... the tea is AMAZING!
... the people are nice
... the colors are beautiful

and luckily we have AC in our rooms. Yay!

It took over 24 hours to get here, but overall it was a good trip! We got in around 1am and went to the hotel and crashed.

This morning I woke up to a distant melody of car horns. Just like I noticed in Ecuador, people drive with one hand steering the wheel and the other hand on the horn. Despite efforts to have quiet zones in the city as depicted in this sign, the horns honk on!



Everything has been great so far and it's pretty much what I expected from a large city like Mumbai. And like most of the places I've traveled, people really like to stare at my blond hair. This one kid couldn't keep his eyes off me!



Here are a few images from the day.

Decked out auto-rickshaw, or as they say in Thailand, a "tuk tuk":



Taj hotel - one of the hotels bombed in the terrorist attacks:



The colors here are amazing:



Our faculty instructor told us not to bring many clothes because we would buy salwar kameez and wear them during our time here. Just before dinner tonight we went shopping in this tiny tiny crowded store and bought a few things. I'm really excited to sport my new purchases - pictures coming soon! The good thing about these pieces is...they are made for the weather so we will be keeping cool (hopefully!).

Tomorrow we'll go to a few museums and do some more sightseeing. I'll be glad to get started on our microfinance studies, but it won't be for a few days yet.

I haven't had much of a chance to take pictures yet - but I am so glad I was able to bring the mondo-camera. Thanks, Flanigans! I'm really looking forward to capturing this with these awesome mega-lenses.

Well, time to sign off. Hope you're all doing well!

Off to India!

It seems like something exciting always happens the week of my birthday!

2004: Left to Study Abroad in Ecuador.
2005: ok...maybe this is the exception...
2006: Left to live in Japan.
2007: Came back to the US.
2008: Got married!

2009 is continuing the trend! As you all know (that's why you're reading this blog) I'm heading to India for about a month to observe/study microfinance in action! With a group of 9 other women, I am going to visit a few NGOs who use microfinance as a tool for women's empowerment. The leader of our trip, Dr. Suzanne Feeney, is one of the authors of this book:



This trip is a study program for which I will receive graduate level credit - so we will be looking at microfinance & women's empowerment through an analytical lense. During this trip I hope to more fully understand the nuts and bolts of implementing a microfinance program - strategy, training, implementation, evaluation, and the challenges and successes.

What is microfinance you say? Google it. If you're too lazy, here's a quote I particularly enjoy from Kofi Annan:

"Microfinance recognizes that poor people are remarkable reservoirs of energy and knowledge. And while the lack of financial services is a sign of poverty, today it is also understood as an untapped opportunity to create markets, bring people in from the margins and give them the tools with which to help themselves."

Three things I like about this quote:
1) many people lack access to financial services.
2) microfinance gives people the tools with which to help themselves.
3) microfinance is an untapped opportunity to create markets.

Of course, while we are there we'll also be enjoying the history, culture, and food of India. Food! I am particularly excited to load up on some fresh Darjeeling and Chai Tea!

This blog will be my personal reflection on my experiences while in India - I hope you'll engage with me by leaving comments when you feel inspired. Thanks for reading!